Chinese President Jiang Zemin recently called
on Party committees and governments at all levels to place
priority on agricultural development and continue efforts to
promote rural reform in accordance with the socialist market
economy.
Jiang, general secretary of the
Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and
chairman of the Central Military Commission, issued the call
during his fact-finding tour of east China's Anhui Province
September 25.
The most difficult task in
accomplishing goals set at the 15th Party Congress centers
on sustaining stable agricultural and rural economic
development, said Jiang, noting that doing a good job in
rural areas will help to ensure overall smooth economic and
social development.
China reform efforts in
rural areas have achieved major breakthrough and notable
success which have helped to promote comprehensive urban and
economic reform. The reform in rural areas came at a time
when over 250 million rural Chinese were suffering from
starvation, said Jiang.
Jiang recounted
China's experience in rural reform over the past two
decades, and noted that a new framework based on the
socialist market economy has basically come into being in
rural areas. The reform has been characterized by the
household contract responsibility system which has helped
end the highly centralized commune system and led to the
introduction of an economy based on multiple ownership
systems.
Improved agricultural production has
ended the long history of shortages of farm products and has
basically solved food problems for 1.2 billion Chinese
people, according to Jiang. He noted that mushrooming
village and township enterprises have also helped to relieve
the pressure of 130 million redundant rural laborers and
have at the same time greatly improved the living standards
of farmers.
Jiang pointed out that the success
of China's rural reform represents a great victory for Deng
Xiaoping Theory. He said that the course of rural reform
readily demonstrates that Deng Xiaoping Theory is the sole
means for freeing the country from the constraints of old
concepts and a rigid system, and will greatly enhance
efforts to build socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Jiang emphasized that the absence of Deng
Xiaoping Theory would have prevented China from developing a
complete set of basic policies on the Party's rural work,
and would sidetracked today's notable achievements.
He said the enthusiasm of farmers is the
primary consideration in formulating rural policies, and
added that steps must be introduced to ensure the economic
interests and democratic rights of farmers. It is necessary
to respect the creativity of farmers as they exhibited in
creating the household contract responsibility system, said
Jiang.
Governments at all levels must
audaciously explore effective ways of realizing public
ownership in rural areas and improve the structure of the
rural ownership system. They must also adhere to
market-oriented rural reform, said Jiang, noting that this
represents the basic experience of rural reform and must
therefore be firmly pursued.
Jiang affirmed
that the existing basic economic system and management
mechanisms based on the household contract and land contract
systems in rural areas have proven effective and must be
maintained. He stressed that market orientation is the key
to rural reform, and reaffirmed that China will not
introduce land privatization
The central
government has adopted a clearly defined land contract
policy which will prolong contract periods for another 30
years, said Jiang, adding that the policy will remain
unchanged.
The general goal of future rural
economic reform will center on an economic system based on
the household contract responsibility system supported by
agricultural socialization services, the marketing system
for farm produce, the protection system for agriculture and
government funding.
The reform of the economic
and political systems should be carried out simultaneously,
said Jiang, noting that strengthening grass roots level
democracy in rural areas and guaranteeing the democratic
rights of farmers are the primary aspects of socialist
democracy in the countryside.
The government
must promote the direct election of village committees, and
democratic decision-making, management and supervision, said
Jiang. He stressed that the expansion of democracy in rural
areas must adhere to the leadership of the Party and must be
carried out in accordance with the law.
Jiang
addressed the issue of long-term agricultural development
and cited water conservancy and science and technology as
two most important areas. He urged local governments to
prioritize the development of rural infrastructure such as
water conservancy and flood control facilities, as well as
afforestation and environmental protection.
He
said measures must be introduced to ensure adherence to the
guidelines of using science and technology to invigorate
agriculture in order to ensure continuing progress and
growth. Jiang said that more attention should be placed on
raising the income levels of farmers.
China's
success in rural areas maily relies on two factors --
seeking truth from facts and the mass line. The two factors
represent fundamental experience gained under the guidance
of Deng Xiaoping Theory in rural reform over the past two
decades and constitute the principle for promoting rural
reform in the future, according to Jiang.
New
circumstances and problems continue to arise in the realm of
rural reform and development, said Jiang, adding that
officials at all levels should go deep into the realities of
reform to learn from the people, rely on the inventiveness
and creativity of farmers and learn to operate under the
conditions of the market economy.
Jiang called
on all officials to gain a better awareness of both China
and worldwide economic development. He said great importance
should be attached to ongoing economic globalization and a
knowledge-based economy in order to blaze a new trail for
the nation's agricultural and rural development.
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